Not Through Blood
by Spiderwiz
Summary: ...But Through Heart. Dick and Damian may have not hit it off at first, but with Bruce gone, Dick is all Damian has. They may not be blood related, but they are family regardless. (A collection of short stories/moments between Dick and Damian taking place during the time everyone thought Bruce was dead.)
1. Broken Bird (Part 1 of 2)

**A/N: Hey everyone! This is my first time writing Damian, so he might be slightly ooc at first. Anyway, this series of short stories between Dick and Damian will be written throughout this whole lovely month of November. I hope you enjoy it!**

"Be careful, Damian," Dick said. "It's important that we stop this drug bust tonight, alright? That means-"

"Not straying from your orders, yes, I know Grayson. No need to speak to me as though I am an infant."

Dick ruffled Damian's hair, much to the younger boy's annoyance. "Good. Now, some of these guys may be amateurs, but don't underestimate them, okay? Now, let's go!"

The two of them got into the Batmobile and set off, heading for the docks, where the bust was supposed to happen. Once there, Dick as Batman and Damian as Robin got into their positions, careful not to be seen. They were currently in an alley, and were positioned in a way that they could easily see the drug dealers when they came over here.

The drugs that were going to be dealt were specifically targeting teenagers, and Dick knew that if citizens of Gotham got ahold of them, it would only bring havoc.

Dick/Batman glanced at the opening of the alley as three vehicles pulled up. He then turned to Damian, who withdrew his katana. "Wait for my signal, then try to take them by surprise," Dick said through his communicator. Damian merely nodded in reply. He waited patiently for the dealers to get out of their cars.

Damian still wasn't used to working with Dick, though it had been over a month since Bruce had...Gone… He didn't like working with Dick much. He thought he was better than Dick; that he deserved to be the Batman. HE was the blood son, not that good-for-nothing, smiling idiot that was now apparently his guardian. But for now… He needed to accept that Dick was his new partner, no matter how much it pained him. This drug case was Damian's best opportunity to show Dick that he was more skilled than he thought. He would prove himself to be worthy to take up the Batman mantle, instead of that imposter, Grayson. Tonight. Tonight he would show Grayson that he was better than him.

As Damian waited for Dick to give the signal, he held his katana in hand and prepared to attack. Damian turned around for a moment and froze in place. There was a man holding a gun and pointing it at his head. Under his breath, Damian uttered a curse that no ordinary 10 year old kid should know. Then again, he wasn't just some stupid ordinary kid. He was the son of Batman.

He took a deep breath and kicked the gangster in the stomach. The man fell down on the ground, but as he fell, he pressed the trigger of the gun, and suddenly a bullet was lodged in Damian's left arm.

Damian couldn't help but wince as the bullet hit him, but more than anything, it only made him angry. He jumped down from his perch, ignoring the sharp pain from his shoulder. He finished the gangster off, then looked at his arm, which had a trail of blood trickling down from it. 'Ouch.'

As the other gangsters heard the gunshot, they got out of the vehicles and ran to the source of it.

Dick was about to give the signal to Damian, when he saw a man come up to him. He was about to warn him, but it was already too late. "Robin, wa-"

He watched as Damian kicked the gangster in the stomach, but then his eyes widened as Damian got shot in his left shoulder.

"Robin! Are you alright?" Dick asked, trying to hide the concern in his voice. He knew that the kid had gotten worse injuries before, but he was still worried for him. If nothing else, it would hinder his fighting abilities, which was obviously not good.

"Ah great," he muttered as he turned back to the cars as the other gangsters got out and ran towards them, guns in their hands. Dick didn't wait for Damian's reply, before jumping off of the roof he was perched on. He met the other gangsters and began taking them out. He had to deal with them before tending to Damian.

Despite Damian's injury, Dick saw him putting up a pretty good fight. A part of him was...proud...for the kid (even if he did occasionally act like a little demon).

Dick went over by Damian to where the rest of the drug dealers were. He punched several of them hard in the jaw, knocking them out, then watched, as Damian took out the last guy. He scanned around him to make sure all the gangsters were taken out, then proceeded to the cars.

He paused, before checking in the cars, then turned to Damian. Beneath the cowl, he frowned slightly as he saw the state of his partner.

Damian's face was very pale, and a large puddle of blood was underneath him, and there was even more blood all over the place. Fighting the gangsters had definitely NOT helped to stop his blood flow. Still, there shouldn't be so much blood…

Dick grimaced when he looked down and saw blood flowing freely from Damian's left thigh. His eyes then widened as he realized a second bullet most likely hit Damian's femoral artery, which would explain why there was so much blood. Right now, Robin looked as though he was about to pass out, which was NOT good. If they waited any longer, he would bleed out to death.

Without a second thought, Dick went through his utility belt and hastily bandaged Damian's wounds the best he could at the moment. "Come on Robin, get in the Batmobile. We need to get you to the medbay pronto." His tone was calm, but he was most definitely not.

Damian scowled. "Tt. I-I am perfectly fine, Grayson. I see no reason to rush to the medical bay." Yep. He was definitely out of it if he used real names on the field. Nevertheless, he took a step forward and proceeded to collapse.

"Robin!" Dick yelled. He rushed over and as quickly as possible, dragged the ex assassin to the Batmobile, before calling Alfred and telling him to get Leslie and prepare the medbay.


	2. Broken Bird (Part 2 of 2)

**A/N: To answer a review, this fanfic will be a collection of MULTIPLE oneshots/twoshots. Anyway, thanks for everyone so far who favorited, followed, and reviewed! I always look forward to hearing from you guys! Enjoy this chapter, and please review!**

Dick tried his best not to fall asleep as he sat in a chair beside Damian's bed. He had been waiting here nearly all night for Damian to wake up. They had nearly lost the kid due to blood loss, but luckily, Leslie managed to save him. Honestly, Dick wasn't sure what he'd do without Leslie, or Alfred too, for that matter. But despite Alfred's attempts, he hadn't gotten Dick to leave Damian's side all night, other than to change and take a quick shower.

Dick was nodding off, almost asleep, when he heard a small groan. He straightened up quickly, suddenly wide awake. "Damian?" he asked, standing up and looming over him as Damian slowly opened his eyes.

"Ugh...Grayson?" Damian asked, looking confused.

Dick grinned widely. "Damian, good, you're awake! Alfred and I were worried. You almost died, you know."

"Tt. Well, as you can see, I'm not dead, so I'll leave now-" Damian replied as he slowly sat up.

Dick gently pushed him back down. "Nuh uh, not so fast, mister. Alfred ordered plenty of bed rest for you, so plenty of bed rest you're going to get."

Damian rolled his eyes, but didn't argue further, to which Dick was thankful. The 10 year old narrowed his eyes. "Fine...But ONLY because I have nothing better to do at the moment."

Dick chuckled and ruffled Damian's hair. "Glad to hear that I won't have to strap you to the bed." He paused. "Now that you're awake, I'll call Leslie to do a quick check up on you, just to make sure you're good to go."

Damian frowned at this. "But-" Dick shot him a look. "Fine…" the younger boy grumbled.

Dick sighed. "I know you don't like this Damian, but we...I… care about you, okay?"

Damian stared at Dick like he'd said something absurd. "What?"

Dick raised an eyebrow. "I said I cared about you… What, did I say something wrong?"

Damian shook his head, then turned away for a moment. "No...Its just that...No one had ever really said that they care about me before…"

Dick frowned. Okay, that was just sad. But then again, what did you expect when your mother was an assassin, and your father was a cold-hearted vigilante?

"I won't lie, that's a bit messed up," Dick said. He went up to Damian and gave him a hug, mindful of his injuries. "Every kid deserves to be told that. But I meant what I said. I know we kinda got off to a rocky start, but I really do care about you, Dami."

Damian was surprised by the hug, but found himself giving into it. He mumbled something into Dick's shirt. Dick smirked slightly and looked at him curiously. "What was that?"

"I said I care about you too," came Damian's muffled reply. Dick grinned. Maybe there was hope for this kid after all.

"Awww, you mean it Damian?"

Damian looked up at Dick, glaring adorably at him. "Forget what I just said, Grayson. My injuries are getting to me."

Dick grinned. "Whatever you say Damian. Whatever you say."


	3. Swimming :)

It was a boiling hot day in Gotham city, and Dick had just returned to the manor early from work. He was exhausted. Working at Wayne Enterprises was definitely not his ideal job, but he couldn't bring himself to sell the company or anything like that, so here he was.

Between Wayne Enterprises and his night job and dealing with Damian, he hadn't been getting adequate sleep lately, and it was affecting him.

But despite his exhaustion, Dick felt the need to get out and do something. Hot days such as this seemed to be getting rarer and rarer in Gotham, even in the summer, and Dick knew he had to take advantage of it while it lasted.

"Hey Alfred," Dick said cheerfully as he entered the manor. It was hot even in here, and a little stuffy too. "Is the AC on?"

Alfred (who was sweeping the kitchen) came out for a moment to see Dick. "Yes it is, sir. And the ceiling fans as well. Shall I open a window?"

Dick shrugged. "Yeah, that's probably be nice. Maybe if we're lucky, a breeze will get going or something."

Alfred nodded, then opened several windows before going back to sweeping. "Master Dick, if you're at all interested, I do believe Master Damian is in the training room down in the cave. It's the only place that's not scorching hot. Perhaps he and you could do some sort of activity together in this heat?"

Suddenly, Dick's eyes widened and he grinned. "Yes! We could go swimming! Thanks Alfred, you're the best!" Without saying another word to the elderly butler, he ran down to the cave.

"Damian! Dami! Come quick! Hurry! Dam-"

There was a huff. "I'm here, Grayson. What is it?"

Dick grinned again. "Well, you know how it's a hot day today? I was thinking we should do something, and Alfred suggested doing an activity in this heat. So I dunno, but I-"

"Grayson, what do you want?" Damian demanded impatiently.

"Do you wanna go swimming?"

Damian stared at him like he was crazy. "Swimming? Of course not Grayson, don't be absurd."

Dick gave Damian his best puppy dog eyes. "But why? Pleeeeeeeeeeease?" he begged.

Damian raised an eyebrow. "No."

Dick pouted. "Oh, come on. Think of it as a training exercise if you want. Knowing how to swim is an important skill, and it can help build your muscles and-"

Damian cut off Dick once again. "-tt- fine. But only because it's a training exercise."

Dick, still grinning, reached over and happily ruffled Damian's hair. Training exercise. He could live with that. Besides, he was convinced that Damian would end up having a good time, whether he admitted it or not.

Dick looked at Damian and gave him a thumbs up as the younger boy stared distastefully at the swim trunks he was wearing. They had ridiculous designs all over them, though Dick kept insisting to him that they were fine. But Damian just wasn't happy to be wearing swim trunks in the first place. Their ridiculous design just added to his hatred of them.

The two walked to the outdoor pool right next to the manor. It hadn't been used for years, so Dick, Damian and Alfred spent a little while cleaning it out and restoring it again. Now, with the bright blue water, the chairs positioned in the perfect amount of shade and sun, and the hot temperature, they were ready to swim.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Dick heard Damian mutter.

"Aw, come on Dami. The water's gonna feel so nice after being in this hot weather all day. Here, I'll show you, it's going to be so much fun. You'll love it."

Without warning, Dick canonbulted into the water, causing a huge splash of water to spray Damian. The ex assassin narrowed his eyes in annoyance as he got all wet. He had to admit though, it did feel nice…

To Dick's surprise, Damian smirked. "Is that the best cannonball you can do, Grayson? Mine will be far better than yours."

Damian sprung into the air, before wrapping his arms around his legs and jumping into the water, creating an even bigger splash than Dick. "Ha, beat that," he said with a satisfied grin.

Dick was still shocked from Damian's sudden display of enjoyment, but shook it off and smiled widely, before chuckling. "Oh, I know I can do better than that," he challenged as he went again.

From inside, Alfred looked through the large window of the kitchen and smiled as he saw his two young charges having a splendid time together in the water. Heavens knew they both needed it. And it was definitely nice to see this sudden change in Damian. He knew the affect Dick Grayson had on people, and was glad that the young man's charms were finally starting to work on the ex assassin.

Bruce Wayne was a great man, but Dick Grayson was acting like a much better father to Damian than Bruce ever had.


	4. Kitten

It had been a few months now, since Dick took Damian under his wing, and Damian wouldn't admit it, but he was starting to really like the older boy. There was something between them that Damian had never had with Bruce, and he liked that.

Despite all of that though, Damian was still not above sneaking out at night.

Dick was a fair Batman, and let Damian go out most nights, but there were times when he didn't. His reasons for that would vary. Sometimes, it would be because Damian was still recovering from an injury, or he needed to keep working on a technique or something along those lines. And when that happened, Damian (being Damian) snuck out to go patrol Gotham on his own.

He may have been 10, but he wasn't stupid. Without Dick as Batman, he wasn't going for the real baddies alone, like the Joker or Two Face or anything. He would just deal with simple muggers and stuff like that. Dick would never know.

Anyway, tonight was one of those nights. Damian, dressed up in his Robin garb, was patrolling Gotham alone. He had already taken out three muggers, one rapist, and one minor drug dealer. Things were going pretty great (for him anyway), and he was about to return to the manor, when he heard a noise.

"Meow?" The noise was heard again. Damian turned his head. It was coming from the alley in front of him. He gripped a batarang in his hand as he stealthily approached the subject of the noise.

Suddenly, Damian jumped out to surprise whatever made the noise and saw--

\--a kitten?

"A kitten?" Damian murmured in disbelief. It was a gray tabby with black stripes running down it, and though Damian wouldn't admit it out loud, the tiny creature was adorable.

He slowly approached the kitten and held out his hand, not sure what to do. He didn't want to scare it off, but wanted to see if it would let him let it. To his surprise, it did, and even started purring as soon as his hand made contact with its fur.

Damian gave a rare smile. "Aw," he said (though if anyone asks, he most definitely did not just utter 'aw').

After stroking the content kitten for another minute or so, Damian looked at it curiously. "Are you lost?" he asked it, though wasn't expecting a reply, of course. The kitten merely meowed again.

"Hmm…" Damian looked around for a second, before turning back to the kitten and picking it up. "Well, I'll give you a home then."

Damian/Robin made his way back to the Batcave, the tiny little bundle of fur in his arms. As soon as he arrived, he changed back into his pjs, then made his way up to his room as silently as possible. Once to his room, he quietly shut his door and set the kitten on his bed. There, it curled up into a little ball, and smiling again, Damian laid down beside it.

The following morning, Dick noticed Damian wasn't up for breakfast yet, and decided to go and wake him.

"Oh Damian," he called as he opened the younger boy's room. "Wakey wakey, time for breakfast you little sleepy-"

Suddenly, Dick paused, and his mouth hung open. On his bed, Damian was curled up right next to a kitten. A kitten. "Okay...What?" Dick said.

Damian's eyes fluttered open, hearing Dick, and he yawned, before sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Urg...Grayson? What are you-"

Suddenly, the 10 year old's eyes widened as he looked between Dick and the kitten. Panicked, he exclaimed, "This isn't what it looks like!!!"

After the initial shock of seeing Damian with a baby animal wore off, Dick grinned widely. "Damian, I didn't know you liked cats."

"W-wha?" Damian quickly shook his head, then cleared his throat. "So what if I do, Grayson?"

Dick came over and gave Damian a hug, much to the younger boy's annoyance. "Awww Dami that's so cute. I should have taken a picture. You looked so adorable and peaceful with that kitten."

Damian glared at Dick, and the older boy just smiled.

"Grayson, I-"

"We'll have to pick up some supplies for it of course, like a litter box and some food and-" Dick continued.

Damian stared at him in shock. "You...You're letting me keep it?"

Dick nodded. "Yeah, of course. You'll have to give him or her a name though. It'll be a good experience for you, showing the responsibility it takes to take care of an animal."

"-tt- Yes, of course. That's why I picked up the kitten. To show you I can be responsible," Damian replied.

Dick ruffled his hair and laughed lightly. "Of course you did. Now what names are you thinking of?"


	5. A Little Cold

When Dick went downstairs for breakfast, he was surprised to see that Damian wasn't already down there. The 10 year old never slept in late, and was most often downstairs before Dick himself was.

Walking into the kitchen, Dick spotted the family's butler, and paused in his steps. "Alfred, have you seen Damian this morning?" he asked.

Alfred shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Master Dick. Would you like me to go check on him?"

Dick shrugged. "No, that's alright. I'll go check on him myself." Without saying another word, he went back upstairs and headed to Damian's bedroom.

"Damian? You in here lil' D?" he asked. Damian's room was dark, and the curtains were still pulled shut. Dick went over and opened them to get some light in the room, then heard a groan and some shuffling. He looked over to the bed and saw a lump under a bunch of blankets. "Damian?" Dick asked again, frowning.

He pulled the blankets off, revealing his little brother, who was pale and had dark circles under his eyes. "G-Grayson?" Damian asked, before sniffing. He sounded congested.

"Aww...Damian, are you sick?" Dick said in reply, sounding concerned. He reached over to feel his forehead, but Damian swatted his hand away. He sniffed again.

"I am perfectly fine, Grayson. I do not get 'sick'."

Dick buckled and ruffled Damian's hair (yeah, he does that a lot), but instead of pushing him away like he usually did, the ex-assassin just glared at Dick.

"C'mon lil' D. Everyone gets sick, especially kids like you. Or did you forget that you're only 10?"

Damian huffed. "Not me. I've never been sick in my life. And I am NOT a child Grayson!"

Dick smirked slightly. "I hate to break it to you, but you are. Anyway, you haven't even been sick once?" he paused. "Well...You're obviously sick now, so don't even try to deny it! And don't tell me you're fine either."

Damian mumbled something that Dick couldn't decided. Dick cleared his throat. "How do you feel though? Are you hot? Cold? Does your throat hurt? Do you feel nauseous at all?"

Damian was silent, and Dick thought he wasn't going to respond, but then he surprisingly did.

"I...I am a bit cold… And my throat hurts. And I feel ridiculously tired." He looked at the floor. "I'm sure it's nothing though. Don't waste your time on worrying for me, Grayson. I will be fine."

Dick frowned again, and sat down on Damian's bed. "And your nose is running," he pointed out. "Looks like you have a cold, buddy. And by the looks of it, it's a bad one."

Damian frowned, obviously not liking what Dick just said. "I do not-" his sentence was interrupted when he coughed. "-have a cold." He sank down in his bed, looking miserable.

Dick patted Damian's shoulder. "Sorry lil' D, but you do. And ignoring it won't get you any better. And absolutely no patrol till you get better. Don't worry though, I'll stay home from work and take care of you so Alfred won't have to." He stood up. "I'll be right back; I'm going to grab you some nice warm tea to help your throat feel better. Hang tight."

Before Damian could object, Dick left the room. He wanted to punch something. No patrol? How long was this stupid cold supposed to last, anyway? He hoped not long. He couldn't stand not being out on patrol. And what if the idiot Grayson hurt himself since he would be alone? Ahm...Not that he cared about Dick…Nope, that was completely absurd...Right?

Damian's thoughts were interrupted, as his cat jumped up on his bed and purred softly, before curling up by him. Damian stroked the cat's fur for a minute before laying back down on his soft pillow. He glanced out his window. Outside, the sky was grey and it was drizzling. He could hear the wind howling.

Damian sniffed and pulled his blanket up further. He shivered. He had a large pile of blankets on top of him, but he was still cold. How? Urgh… Being sick was most definitely NOT fun.

The 10 year old shut his eyes and then slowly drifted off to sleep…

Dick didn't want to bother Alfred, who was busy as usual, so he decided to make the tea himself. It turned out to be a bad idea… He nearly burnt down the kitchen just from trying to boil some water, and once that was done, he was unsure of what to do next. He looked through several cupboards and the fridge to look for stuff to put in the tea.

"Hmm...How does one make tea? I need to get Alfred to tell me his secrets…" Dick said to himself, grinning as he dumped the components in. Those consisted of half a lemon, about a cup of sugar, and a handful of random herbs he had found. It was a very odd looking mixture. Deciding to taste it before giving it to Damian, he took a sip, then proceeded to spit it out right away and choke. "Argh-bleh, what the heck IS this?" He frowned. "Yeah, whatever this is, it's not tea."

At that moment, Alfred made his way to the kitchen and raised an eyebrow when he saw Dick. "Young sir, what are you doing?"

Dick grinned sheepishly. "I...tried to make tea…"

Alfred looked at the odd mixture in Dick's cup. "My word, Master Richard! That is not tea!"

Dick went over to the sink and dumped it out. "Yeah, I figured that out after I tasted it. Mind making some for Damian? The poor kid is stuck in bed with a cold."

Alfred looked surprised by this news. "Master Damian is sick? Poor lad… Yes, I will prepare some tea for him right away."

Dick smiled. "Thanks Alfred."

"No problem. And Master Dick?"

Dick raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"Don't ever attempt to make tea again."

A few minutes later, Dick brought a steaming cup of hot tea to Damian's room. He opened the door and walked in, then a smile came to his face as he saw the younger boy. He was sleeping, and he was clutching a pillow beside him. His cat was curled up on top of him, and he was snoring softly. His dark hair was tousled, and overall, the boy looked super adorable. Dick took out his phone and snapped a picture, before bringing the cup of tea over to the bedside table.

Dick didn't want to wake Damian, especially since he looked so peaceful, but he wanted him to drink the tea before it became cold. He gently shook his shoulder to wake him up.

"Mmph...Five more minutes, Pennyworth," Damian mumbled quietly and he turned in bed.

Dick did his best not to chuckle at that. "Damian, wake up. I have your tea."

Damian suddenly sat up, and rubbed his eyes. "Wha… Oh, Grayson, it's you." His voice sounded croaky, and Dick winced slightly, knowing how much his thirst must be hurting.

"Here, drink this. You'll feel better." He handed him the cup of tea, and Damian looked at it sleepily, before taking a small sip.

Dick slid next to Damian, and was taken by surprise when Damian's head fell on his shoulder and rested their. "I..Thank you, Richard," Damian said.

A smile came to Dick's lips. "Anytime lil' D, anytime."

 **A/N: Aww, was it just me, or was this chapter adorable? I love Damian so much! Anyone else feel Damian in this? I swear, everyone's been getting sick lately. I myself have a tiny cold rn. Anyway, I need a name for Damian's cat...Any ideas? (This isn't Alfred the cat by the way, he comes later, as I'm sure you know). Thanks for reading!**


	6. A Nightmare

Dick was sleeping peacefully in his bed after a long night of patrol. It had went pretty well for the most part, but near the end, they were fighting Scarecrow, when Damian got a whiff of the fear gas. He was okay after getting the cure, but Dick was still worried that there would be some lingering effects. Nevertheless, Damian had insisted that he was fine, and went straight for bed.

Judging by Damian's slightly off behavior that evening, Dick probably should have guessed something was up, but he didn't, until he heard his door creak open in the middle of the night.

Dick immediately sat up in his bed and switched on his lamp. "Who's there?!" he said. He was a bit shocked when he saw the small form of Damian walk in, looking slightly nervous. His hair was tousled in an adorable way from sleep, and he was wearing some blue silk pajamas.

"Damian?" Dick asked, confused, as he blinked the sleep from his eyes.

"Yes, you imbecile, who else would it be?" came Damian's reply. His tone was off somehow though...It sounded almost as though he was afraid of something…

"Lil' D? What are you doing here?"

"I-" Damian started, before pausing, looking unsure of how to answer that. "I was-"

A smile came to Dick's face, and he patted his bed, motioning for Damian to sit down. "You had a nightmare, didn't you?"

Damian gaped at him, then glared. "I-I did not have a nightmare! Do not make such absurd accusations, Grayson."

Dick smirked. "Sure." His smirk faltered when he saw the distraught expression on Damian's face. He went over to his little brother and engulfed him in a big ol' hug. "Hey, it's okay! Everyone gets nightmares sometimes, even me!"

Damian bit hip lip and looked down. Dick frowned. It must have been a bad one if he was acting like this. Dick grabbed his arm and led him to his bed, where the two of them saw together.

"It...It was NOT a night a nightmare!" Damian insisted. Then, he was silent again. "It was merely… A fear induced hallucination...From Scarecrow's fear gas…"

Dick slung an arm over his shoulders. "Okay, sure. A fear induced hallucination...What was it about? You seem pretty shaken up by it."

To Dick's surprise, Damian leaned into Dick and rested his head on his shoulder. "I-I don't want to talk about it." Another pause. "It...It was about...You…" Damian said after a moment. He looked away from Dick, as if what he had just said was very self-degrading.

Dick couldn't help but be touched by that. If Damian had a nightmare/fear induced vision about him, then that must mean he secretly cared about him! And the fact that he went to him for comfort just now…

Dick wrapped his arms around Damian again, and pulled him closer. "Well, whatever happened in it, I'm okay now, see?"

Damian suddenly buried his face into Dick's chest and clutched onto his shirt. Dick swore that he heard a faint sob. It kind of startled him, not used to seeing this side of Damian. But at the same time, he liked seeing the kid act more...Human…

"You-" Damian sniffed. "You left me…"

Dick's eyes widened slightly at that comment. Then, his expression sifted. He took Damian by the shoulder and looked him in his eyes, which were swollen from crying. "Damian-" he said in a very serious tone. "I want you to know that I would NEVER abandon and leave you for ANY reason. Not now, not ever. Do you understand?"

Damian sniffed again, and gave a single nod.

"Good, Dick replied. Without another word, the two climbed into Dick's bed and stayed like that for the rest of the night, Damian cuddling into Dick's side.


	7. Thanksgiving

**A/N: Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who celebrates it! May you eat to your heart's content today… Anyway, this is a short Thanksgiving themed oneshot, so enjoy! (Ps, characters may be slightly ooc)**

"Grayson, I do not understand why we must celebrate this ridiculous holiday," Damian Wayne said as he sipped from a glass of ice cold water.

Dick frowned slightly. "Aw c'mon lil' D. It's not ridiculous, it's a day to celebrate everything and everyone you're thankful for. It's a day to be with the ones you care about and love. It's a day-"

Damian scowled, cutting Dick off. "I've had enough of this sentimental sappiness. It's just a day where people eat too much in order to hide all their insecurities."

Dick stared at Damian. "What?" he shook his head. "No, no, no. Thanksgiving is great, and I want to spend it with you Lil' D. Because I care about you." He gave Damian his puppy dog eyes.

"Tt," Damian replied. "I still think it's ridiculous."

Dick sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He remembered having a similar conversation to Bruce years ago. Because Dick was Romani, he never knew what Thanksgiving was u till he heard some kids talking about it at school. Upon insisting that Bruce start celebrating it with him, the older man said that it was a waste of time and refused until Alfred forced him to. Ah, memories.

But now, Bruce was gone. Dick had tried to contact Tim, but he was still angry at him, and never responded. Dick tried Jason (albeit a little hesitant) but couldn't contact him either. Wally was too busy working off world as the Flash, so he couldn't. Dick was getting a little upset by then, and went to Barbara in person to ask her if she (and her father) wanted to join them at Wayne Manor for a Thanksgiving feast, but she too had some excuse.

Dick was starting to think that it would just be him and Lafred, when he gleefully remembered that Damian was here too. Sure, it wouldn't be the same with just him, but it was definitely better than being alone. Naturally though, Damian was refusing to celebrate this "ridiculous" holiday with him.

"PLEASE Damian?" Dick pleaded, kneeling on the ground dramatically.

Damian stared at Dick. "That's pathetic Grayson," he muttered. But the 10 year old boy grew more uncertain about whether he really wanted to deny Grayson this or not. The older boy may have been annoying at times, and most often insufferable, but despite the common belief, Damian DID care about Dick.

"Fine," he mumbled.

Dick immediately perked up. "What? What did you say?"

"I said fine!" Damian replied in an annoyed tone, though a slight smile was on his lips.

Without any warning, Dick went over and embraced him in a hug. "Aww, thanks Dami! You don't know how much this means to me!"

"Tt. Stop acting like an idiot, Grayson."

Dick smiled. "Okay, okay. Now let's go see what kinds of pies Alfred is making in the kitchen. They smell delicious!"


	8. Snowball Fight!

"Damian! Damian! Damian, Damian, Damian! Lil' D! Dami-"

"Grayson, what IS it?" Damian demanded as he stormed into the dining room of Wayne Manor. "Your repetitive shouting was not needed, as I was in the next room."

"Damian! Damian! Damian-"

"GRAYSON!!!" Damian roared. "Tell me what you want before I get Pennyworth to shut your mouth."

Dick grinned very widely and pointed to the window. "It's snowing!"

Damian rolled his eyes. "How very observant of you," he said sarcastically. "Now is that all? I have things of actual importance to attend to."

"It's snowing Lil'D! The first snowfall of this year! Do you know what this means?"

"What," Damian grumbled.

Dick ran out of the dining room to get his coat. "SNOWBALL FIGHT!!!" he exclaimed.

Damian narrowed his eyes. "No," he said plainly.

Dick went over and grabbed his hand, dragging him to the door. "Aw, c'mon Lil' D! It'll be fun! And then I'll get Alfred to make us some hot chocolate after."

"Tt- I will not waste my time with these undignified activities. I absolutely refuse."

"It will be good target practice. And if you win, I'll let you drive the Batmobile tonight."

Damian was silent for a few moments, seemingly contemplating this offer. Then…

"Deal."

Dick's grin widened. "Great! You won't regret this Damian. Now get your coat and gloves on, and let's go!" He paused. "Oh, and hat, scarf, extra warm socks… Alfred will kill me if you catch a cold or anything after being in the snow."

Damian glared at Dick. "There is no need to treat me like a child. I can handle myself."

Dick ruffled Damian's hair before pulling on his boots. "Sure you can," he said.

"Tt- Let's just get going so I can beat you already."

Dick chuckled and led Damian outside to the snow. Because the property was so large, there was a ton of untouched, pure white snow. It was a beautiful sight, all of the trees covered in the light powder with small icicles hanging down from their branches.

"Okay," Dick said once they were situated. "Five minutes to build a fort and start forming snowballs. Then the fight begins."

Damian grinned (though he would later deny he did) and eagerly got down in the snow and started forming a fort. The snow was just the right type for doing so.

On the other side of the yard, Dick was beginning to build his own fort. As quickly as he could, he patched the snow together to form a decent sized barrier to protect him from Damian's snowballs. It was pretty sturdy too, which was just what Dick wanted.

After he finished with that, he had about 30 seconds left to spare, and started forming snowballs. He glanced over to Damian's side and saw the boy still patching up his fort. Dick raised an eyebrow in surprise. Damian's fort was impressive. It was larger than his own, and looked even sturdier too. But then again, what else did he expect from the ex assassin?

"Okay-" Dick said after the 30 seconds had passed. "-Times up! Now ready-set…..Fight!"

Damian made the first move, launching a smooth snowball at Dick, who yelled as he had to dodge out of the way to avoid it. He saw Damian smirk. "Scared, Grayson?"

"You wish," Dick replied with a matching smirk of his own. With all his might, he threw a snowball at Damian. The younger boy easily dodged out of the way.

"Pathetic," Damian commented at Dick's through. "Can't you throw any better?"

"Hey!" Dick said as Damian threw another snowball at him. It came so quickly that he couldn't dodge out of the way this time, and he fell backwards as it hit him. "Oof," he muttered. He quickly got back up to his knees. "Now you're getting it."

He grinned again as he formed another snowball and shot it at his lil bro. Damian's eyes widened as part of his fort fell apart when the snowball hit it. The younger boy had to duck out of the way as an assault of snowballs flew over his head and destroyed more of his fort.

Damian suddenly kept up and formed as many snowballs as he could, as quickly as he could. "Take this, Grayson!" he said, grinning as he threw snowball after snowball.

Dick threw one at Damian, which hit the ex-assassin square in the stomach, causing him to topple over. That didn't stop him though, and he quickly continued his attack, grinning boldly.

Dick grinned too, seeing how much Damian seemed to enjoy this. "Having fun, Lil' D?" he asked.

Damian tried to hide his grin, but failed. "Tt. Of course not."

"Riiiiight," Dick replied, winking at him.

"Surrender Grayson!" Damian yelled.

"Never!" Dick yelled back.

Damian sent a snowball at him again, this time hitting him in the head.

Dick fell over. One of Damian's snowballs hit a tree that was looming over Dick, causing a ton of snow to fall on him. Several more snowballs attacked him.

"Ah!" Dick exclaimed. "Okay, okay, I surrender!"

"Yes!" Damian stood up and proudly threw his hands up in the air. "I am the snowball fight champion!"

Dick swatted the snow out of his face. "Yep, guess you are."

Damian smirked. "That means I get to drive the Batmobile tonight ."

Dick's eyes widened. "No! I was kidding! I take it back!"

"Too late Grayson!" Damian called out as he started back inside. "Now let's get some of that hot chocolate you said Pennyworth was making."

Dick grinned and stood up before following Damian inside.


	9. We Were the Best

**A/N: I'm sorry to say this, but in order to focus more on some of my other stories, this one is going to have to come to an end :( Don't be sad though! If you guys are loving this, you should go check out my story Flight of Vengeance. There will be a ton of Dick and Damian fluff and stuff in that. And instead of these oneshots, I might also do another separate fic of these two beans if I get any ideas. If y'all have any, just let me know! Anyway, enjoy this last chapter!**

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When Damian had first become Dick's Robin, the two of them didn't get along that well. But with Dick's many efforts, Alfred's help, and Damian's slight change of heart, the two really started to warm up to each other. Now, they were more than just partners. They were family. They had a brotherly bond, but even more than that… A father-son like relationship. It was weird for Dick to think about, but ever since he'd become Damian's legal guardian with Bruce "dead", he had grown to care about the younger boy in a way really only a father could. And Damian had never verbally expressed it, but Dick could tell he looked up to Dick as a father-figure as well. So many things had changed with Bruce away, and it seemed right as when they started to have a certain system and adjusted way of life… Well, Bruce came back.

Dick had called Tim crazy for believing Bruce was still alive for months now, but now he was proven to be right. But what did this mean for Dick and Damian now? They were all glad to have Bruce back, of course, but Dick noticed that DAmian had been acting a little off lately. And so he decided to go talk to the ten year old.

"Damian?" Dick called out as he knocked on the boy's door in the manor. No reply. Dick tried again, and this time, the door opened. But Dick was surprised by what he saw. Damian was standing there, but tear tracks were on his face. Okay, now the alarms in Dick's head were starting to go off. Damian? Crying? Oh nonono, something had to be really bad. Did something happen to one of his cats? What?

Dick frowned. "Lil' D? You alright?" Damian didn't respond, and retreated further into his darkened room, before sitting down on his bed. The ex-assassin was looking pretty downtrodden at the moment, and Dick couldn't figure out what was wrong.

"Hey, what's wrong? Talk to me." He took a seat by Damian, and gently placed a hand on the other's arm.

Damian sniffed and turned away, shrugging Dick's hand off his arm. "Its nothing," came his short reply. Dick raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing? Come on Lil' D. I've known you long enough to know that you never cry unless something's seriously wrong. So what is it? What happened?"

Damian was silent for a minute. And then-

"This."

"What?" Dick questioned, raising an eyebrow. He was growing more confused by the second.

"This!" Damian growled. "Father's back now and-and that means everything will be different now. You won't be Batman anymore and… Where does that leave me?" He sniffed again. "We were the best together, Grayson… And now that's all coming to an end."

Suddenly, Dick understood. Damian had hardly gotten to know Bruce before his mysterious disappearance, and all he knew about his father, was that he didn't approve of him. Not really. Bruce had never shown Damian any of the kindness Dick had. He was his father by birth, but not his real family. That alone belonged to Dick, and maybe even Alfred. But not Bruce. And now, with him back, Dick and Damian couldn't be Batman and Robin together anymore. Their Dynamic Duo act would have to stop. Damian would most likely continue to be Robin for Bruce, but…

"It won't be the same," Dick finished for Damian. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry… If I had any choice, I would keep being your Batman. But Damian-"

Damian turned back and looked at him.

"-Yeah, things will be different now, but that doesn't mean I'll just leave you here alone with B. I know how difficult he can be, and I'll make sure everything starts going well between you two before I head back to Bludhaven. And even when I do leave, I'll make sure to visit all the time!" Dick smiled, though it was a sad smile. "It's going to be tough, but I know you can handle it." He got off the bed and knelt on the floor, looking into Damian's eyes. His expression was suddenly very serious.

"Bruce talked to me just a few hours ago, actually…" Dick's expression turned slightly angry. "He wants custody of you again."

At that, Damian's mouth fell open, and he looked ready to protest. But before he could, Dick continued.

"I know...I hate it too. I tried to argue, but you know how Bruce can be…" Dick didn't say it outloud to Damian, but he was really pissed at Bruce right now. Yeah, he may have been DAmian's biological father, but Dick was the one who raised him after all this time! Dick was the one who knew Damian, who actually cared about Damian… Who didn't care about his past or who his mother was, or any of that. He genuinely cared about Damian, and that was something Dick wasn't sure Bruce was capable of doing.

"But Lil' D… I'll never be out of your life. Never. And I can promise that."

Damian shook his head and wiped his eyes with his right hand. "I-I… I wanted to meet Father for the longest time, but ever since I did, it didn't matter anymore. You're the one I want to stay with, Dick. Not him."

Dick was surprised that Damian actually used his first name for once (or rather nickname). His heart was warmed by the compliment, but it also saddened him. "I'm sorry," he said, his eyes low and his voice only a whisper. "I'm sorry, but this is how it has to be. But we'll always be family. I'll always be there for you. I know personally how difficult Bruce can be, but just give him a little while, and he'll warm up to you, okay?" He managed a smile and suddenly leaned forward and embraced Damian in a tight hug.

"Its like you said," he whispered into the younger boy's ear. "We were the best together. And we always will be."


End file.
